Religious persecution of Ahmadiyya Muslim Community continues worldwide. In Pakistan, Blasphemy Laws are being used specially against Ahmadis to harass them. Millions of religious minority are under threat to be falsely implicated in any such case on the basis of personal enmity with a punishment from 3 years RI to death. This blog was created to update Pakistani visitors of www.thepersecution.org, access to which was blocked by Pakistan Telecommunication Authority without any reason.

Saturday, February 12, 2011

Police officers guarding the Al Hidayah Mosque, an Ahmadiyah place of worship, in Jakarta on Thursday following Sunday’s deadly attack on sect members. (Antara Photo/Fanny Octavianus)

The deadly attack on an Ahmadiyah community last Sunday has prompted lawmakers and the government to speed up work on a religious harmony bill meant to prevent future violence.

“Ideally, we need three to four sitting periods to deliberate a law,” said Ahmad Zainuddin, deputy head of House of Representatives Commission VIII, which oversees religious affairs.

“But given the urgency, I am sure that we could push for the completion of the religious harmony bill by the end of the year,” he said on Friday.

The bill being drafted by the House’s expert staff at the Secretariat General is part of the 2011 National Legislation Program (Prolegnas), or the list of priority bills for the year.

Ahmad said the bill would serve as a shield for religious groups and would ensure that everyone would be able to practice their faith without fear of violence or intimidation.

However, M. Arwani Thomafi, a member of Commission VIII from the Islam-based United Development Party (PPP), said although the spirit of the bill was to respect all faiths, it would not recognize groups established to defame other religions.

He said the bill would not address the 2008 join ministerial decree limiting the activities of the Ahmadiyah, a minority Muslim sect deemed deviant for its teachings.

However, Arwani said the bill, if passed into law, would provide the Ahmadis with more protection, but added that regulations alone would never be able to completely eradicate religious violence in the country.

He said families, civic groups and religious figures needed to work together to promote tolerance and harmony.

The Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) said on Friday that it was considering whether to use the House’s right to question the government to call in officials over the failure to prevent religious violence.

Ahmad Basarah, deputy secretary general of the PDI-P, said in a news conference at the party’s headquarters in South Jakarta that chairwoman Megawati Sukarnoputri had urged members to discuss the issue in the House.

“We will soon summon members of the House leadership from the PDI-P to accelerate the establishment of a special committee to talk about violence related to religion,” he said after a party meeting on Thursday.

“The special committee could end up exercising its interpellation rights and summoning the president to question him about the matter,” Ahmad said.

Hamka Haq, a senior PDI-P official, blamed state officials for the violence, saying some had made statements encouraging attacks on minority sects.

He cited edicts from the Religious Affairs Ministry ordering the Ahmadiyah sect to disband and the Justice Ministry’s statement that religious attacks were not human rights violations.

“Those statements from the president’s helpers encouraged and boosted the confidence of the attackers,” he said. “They make the situation worse.”

Hamka said the state needed to stop condoning violence.

“We won’t say that Ahmadiyah beliefs are true,” he said. “We only want to stress that it’s wrong if the government cannot provide protection for Ahmadiyah members.”

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Indonesian military backs religious persecution

Footage shot by the ABC shows Indonesian military and police officers meeting with Muslim clerics to plan persecution of an Islamic sect.

Official Blasphemy by Pakistani Authorities

Pakistani authorities removed Kalima and Names of Allah from Ahmadiyya Mosque in Lathianwala near Faisalabad, Punjab. Approximately 300 Policemen and Elite Force commandos raided Ahmadiyya houses on 10th August, 2009 to commit the shameless act of Official Blasphemy having “NO FEAR” of Allah, the Almighty.

Mob attack on Ahmadiyah Muslims in Umbulan Village, Indonesia

A Mob comprising of 1,500 religious fanatics, chanting slogans to destroy Ahmadiyah, attacked a house used by Ahmadiyah members for prayers in Umbulan Village, Cikeusik Sub district, Pandeglang District, Indonesia. About 20 Ahmadiyah followers were present in house when attackers started destroying the house, put various vehicles on fire. Three Ahmadis were brutally beaten to death after they were stripped while five sustained serious injuries. An Ahmadi who managed to save his life by showing his press card recorded this tragic incident.WARNING: This video contains some scenes of extreme violence, not fit for viewing by children or persons with weak hearts. Viewer discretion is strongly advised. ________________________